HISTORICAL: Post Civil War RomanceSETTING: US 1866HEROINE: 23 year old widow

Refusing to pick up a gun for the Confederacy, Clayton Holland was branded a deserter and imprisoned during the war. When he returned home to Cedar Grove, he was given a coward's welcome, spurned by everyone in town. To Meg Warner, Clay's presence was a constant offense: a betrayal of the cause for which her husband and brothers died.

As a punishment, she commissioned Clay, a talented sculptor, to create a memorial for Cedar Grove's fallen heroes, hoping that every name he carved into stone would carve remorse into his heart. But, as Meg spent months watching Clay work, she began to see strength instead of cowardice. And she discovered that a hero could be found in the most unlikely of men. That passion could be sculpted from a heart hardened by bitterness. And that sometimes love―like courage―whispers instead of shouts.

2 Reviews:

The summary on the back cover of Always To Remember ends with the statement that "sometimes love - like courage - whispers instead of shouts." That is how I will remember this book. It is filled with small moments. There is no feisty heroine and no arrogant hero. There are simply two wounded people brought together in sorrow, transformed by the healing power of love.

Set in Texas after the Civil War, war widow Meg Warner commissions Clayton Holland to sculpt a war memorial. She does so out of revenge - he had refused to fight in the war and has been branded a coward by his brother, his town, his South. She plans to watch him carve and sculpt day by day until he admits his cowardice and begs for her forgiveness. (read more)

This was a sweet, heart-warming romance, and it did have some passionate moments, too. When it comes to the romance, there is a bit of a role reversal, because it's Clay who is the innocent virgin, who has never even kissed a woman, and Meg who is the more experienced one, who basically takes the initiative in their lovemaking. These scenes just worked really well. (read more)